SINGAPORE: A 31-year-old Malaysian man has been arrested for his alleged involvement in a China officials impersonation scam, the Singapore Police Force said in a news release on Tuesday (May 15).

A woman fell for the scam in November last year and lost S$5.4 million. She was led to believe that she had to surrender all her money to Chinese authorities to assist in investigations, said the police.

Investigations revealed that the victim delivered the money to different strangers at various locations in Singapore over a week. The suspects then fled the country, said the police.

With the help of the Royal Malaysian Police, the 31-year-old suspect was arrested on Monday in Kuala Lumpur. He will be charged in court on Wednesday with dishonestly receiving stolen property.

If found guilty, he faces a jail term of up to five years and a fine.

The police added that another Malaysian man was arrested in January with the help of Malaysian authorities, for his involvement in the same case. The 20-year-old has since been charged for money laundering offences.

The police advised members of the public to ignore unsolicited calls asking for money or personal information such as Internet banking usernames and passwords.

“No government agency will demand payment through an undocumented medium like a telephone call or other social messaging platforms (WeChat or Facebook),” said the police.

To seek scam-related advice, members of the public can call the anti-scam helpline at 1800-722-6688 or visit www.scamalert.sg.